SAE Graphic Design · Logo Design

Logo design
that starts with ideas.

Applying Allan Peters’s brand mark process

ResearchSketchTestBuild
Today’s goal

Move from a vague brief to a defensible brand mark.

You will build a shared noun list, explore broadly, judge ideas in black and white, and develop a small identity system.

Peters’s published workflow

10–15 nouns → 50–100 sketches → 15 monochrome marks → 3 directions → 1 system

Source: Allan Peters, “This is my full logo process”

Central principle

Judge the idea before the finish.

01

Meaning first

Agree on relevant subject matter before drawing.

02

Form second

Explore many rough solutions before polishing one.

03

System last

Add colour, typography and applications after the strongest ideas survive.

Running example · fictional brief

Loop Coffee

An approachable speciality café in Zurich for students and freelancers. It needs a mark that works on cups, signage and social profiles.

Audience Students & freelancersPosition Speciality without elitismUse Small & large formats
01 / Define the subject matter

Make a brand-noun list with the client.

Peters proposes subjects, invites client additions, then narrows the list to 10–15 nouns that the mark could depict or combine.

Ask: “What objects, places, initials, actions or symbols are genuinely connected to this brand?”
Loop Coffee · classroom example

Start with subjects you can draw.

loopcupbeantablesteampathcircledoorseatLCcommunity

Which nouns connect to the brief? Which are only familiar café clichés?

Class activity · 7 minutes

Build a list of 10–15 brand nouns.

  1. Write more possibilities than you need.
  2. Ask your partner to add missing associations.
  3. Cross out weak, generic or irrelevant words.
  4. Agree on the final list before drawing.
02 / Generate possibilities

Make 50–100 rough sketches.

Combine nouns. Change scale. Try letterforms, positive and negative space. Keep the drawings quick enough to discard.

noun + noun = a question worth sketching
Loop Coffee · idea prompts

Do not settle on the first combination.

loop + cup

Could the cup rim or handle create a loop?

L + path

Could a letterform guide the eye through the mark?

steam + circle

Can motion suggest both coffee and gathering?

table + community

Can a simple form show people coming together?

Class activity · 15 minutes

Draw 20 thumbnails now.
Continue to 50–100 later.

1–5One noun at a time
6–10Combine two nouns
11–15Try initials or negative space
16–20Push the strangest promising idea
03 / Curate before vectorising

Choose roughly 15 sketches worth developing.

Relevant

Can you connect it to the agreed nouns and brief?

Distinctive

Does it have an idea beyond a common category symbol?

Simple

Could it survive reduction and quick recognition?

Flexible

Could it work in several practical settings?

These four review questions are a classroom evaluation tool, not a quoted Peters checklist.

04 / First client presentation

Present 15 marks in black and white.

Show

The mark, its core idea, and how it relates to the noun list.

Hold back

Accent typography, colour, mockups and a fully built brand world.

“This keeps it about the idea.” — Allan Peters
Peer review · 10 minutes

Which ideas deserve a second round?

  1. Present marks without a moodboard or mockup.
  2. Explain the noun combination in one sentence.
  3. Ask what viewers actually see before telling them.
  4. Record misunderstandings and select the strongest ideas.
05 / Develop the shortlist

Take three selected ideas into full directions.

Now explore colour, typography, a brand family and a pattern for each direction.

Develop each direction

A strong mark must lead somewhere.

01ColourWhat mood and contrast support the concept?
02TypographyHow does type work with the mark?
03Brand familyHow do lockups and supporting elements relate?
04PatternCan the idea create a repeatable visual language?
The real-world test

Would someone actually use it?

Peters tests Gulf Vibes on a hat: a simple “would you wear it?” check.

Loop Coffee Cup at arm’s lengthStreet view Sign from across the roadDigital Small profile image

The Loop Coffee applications are an adaptation of his test, not his examples.

Class activity · 30 minutes

Make three small direction boards.

For each: mark + colour + type + one relevant application.

Show the same application for all three directions so the comparison stays fair.
06 / Commit and extend

Choose the direction whose idea can carry the system.

Refine the mark, resolve details, and repeat its visual logic across the identity.

mark→type→lockups→pattern→applications
Student submission

Show how the final idea was earned.

  1. Brief and approved 10–15 brand nouns
  2. 50–100 rough sketches
  3. About 15 selected monochrome marks
  4. Feedback and the three chosen directions
  5. Final mark, system and relevant applications
Final critique

Can you trace the final mark back to the brief?

Which nouns produced the idea?

What changed after feedback?

Why did this direction beat the other two?

Where does the concept reappear in the system?

Takeaway

Good logos are selected through a process, not guessed in one sitting.

Start with meaning. Explore widely. Judge the idea. Build the system.

Research basis

Sources & scope

This is an educational adaptation. Loop Coffee, activities, critique questions and submission requirements were created for this lesson.

Slides